One should never praise Robert Hossein enough for his films noirs (roughly from 1955 to 1964).Some were thoroughly enjoyable ("La Nuit Des Espions" "La Mort D'Un Tueur ") some highly commendable ("Toi Le Venin" ,"Le Jeu De La Vérité" and one should add "Le Monte-Charge" ,which,although directed by Marcel Bluwal ,displayed the Hossein/Dard touch).There were turkeys too ("Les Scélérats") but Hossein did show flair for the Film Noir A La Française .Once he relinquished the genre,he became another mediocre director ,filming "Spaghetti" westerns or academic yarns (His "miserables" was inferior to Raymond Bernard's )The only interesting movie of this "second career" was "J'Ai Tué Raspoutine" ,because of the accuracy of the historical events - thanks to the presence in the first minutes of the monk's assassin Felix Youssoupov" and the things the director had learned in his films noirs in the last third of the film.
It's Hossein's debut as a director and it's brilliant .Abetted by Frederic Dard's screenplay -Dard would provide Hossein with his best stories-,Hossein makes his movie a winner.I have always thought that Dard's real oeuvre was his dark pessimistic thrillers ,not the saucy San Antonio series.The movie features two parts,one shows without any complacency the prison life.So much for the beginning:there's an informer in jail and it must be Macquart or Rudel....who share the same cell...In the first minutes ,we know it won't be a gangsters story but a "In Camera" ,a "no exit" drama.
After the two men's escape it's another Huis Clos in a small house by the sea where the two men are hiding from the Police and trying to repair an old car.There lives a gorgeous girl (Marina Vlady was 17 at the time)with an angel face .This character is particularly intriguing for the young girl has barely ten lines to say in a 45 minutes presence. This part was handled by Vlady with superb sensuality and sensitivity,enough to set the two fugitives' mind on fire.Both are efficient:Henri Vidal,cast against type as a crude brute and Serge Reggiani,excellent as ever ,give a balanced performance ,being all in all incapable of choosing between a pal and a woman.
The last shot of Vlady watching the two men walking away packs a real wallop.Revenge is a dish best eaten cold.
Like this?Try these.....
"La Red" Emilio Fernandez,1953
"Noz W Wodzie" Roman Polanski,1962
"The night of the following day" Hubert Cornfield ,1968
"Point de Chute": Hossein ,1970;this movie imitates Cornfield's work as well as "Les Salauds....",while returning to the director's former style ,but it's marred by Johnny Hallyday's amateurish playing.
It's Hossein's debut as a director and it's brilliant .Abetted by Frederic Dard's screenplay -Dard would provide Hossein with his best stories-,Hossein makes his movie a winner.I have always thought that Dard's real oeuvre was his dark pessimistic thrillers ,not the saucy San Antonio series.The movie features two parts,one shows without any complacency the prison life.So much for the beginning:there's an informer in jail and it must be Macquart or Rudel....who share the same cell...In the first minutes ,we know it won't be a gangsters story but a "In Camera" ,a "no exit" drama.
After the two men's escape it's another Huis Clos in a small house by the sea where the two men are hiding from the Police and trying to repair an old car.There lives a gorgeous girl (Marina Vlady was 17 at the time)with an angel face .This character is particularly intriguing for the young girl has barely ten lines to say in a 45 minutes presence. This part was handled by Vlady with superb sensuality and sensitivity,enough to set the two fugitives' mind on fire.Both are efficient:Henri Vidal,cast against type as a crude brute and Serge Reggiani,excellent as ever ,give a balanced performance ,being all in all incapable of choosing between a pal and a woman.
The last shot of Vlady watching the two men walking away packs a real wallop.Revenge is a dish best eaten cold.
Like this?Try these.....
"La Red" Emilio Fernandez,1953
"Noz W Wodzie" Roman Polanski,1962
"The night of the following day" Hubert Cornfield ,1968
"Point de Chute": Hossein ,1970;this movie imitates Cornfield's work as well as "Les Salauds....",while returning to the director's former style ,but it's marred by Johnny Hallyday's amateurish playing.